Paintbrush attachment



15, 1953 R. w. PERKINS PAINTBRUSH ATTACHMENT Filed Oct. 25. 1948INVENTOR. Roeger W E'RK/MS ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 15, 1953 UNITED STATESPATENT OFFICE PAINTBRUSH ATTACHMENT Robert W. Perkins, Niles, OhioApplication October 25, 1948, Serial No. 56,438 2 claims. (Cl. 24'6i Myinvention relates to paint brushes, more particularly to paint brushesfor use in painting wherein a relatively sharp line of demarcation isrequired, and the principal object of my invention is to provide new andimproved paint brushes of the character described.

My invention may be used in the painting of sash, strips, signs, andother kinds of painting requiring relatively exact lines of demarcation,and my invention accomplishes the intended purpose economically andwithout the requirement of skill or time-consuming patience.

In the painting of window sash or window dividing strips, for example,by means of a conventional' paint brush, it is difficult to avoidgetting paint on the glass without the use of. considerable skill andtime. Some painters have masked the. glass, to solve. the problem, butthis is" time consuming. Plate-like handshields have been used to avoidthe difiiculty, but this has not been found reliable, since paint wouldrun under the shield and onto the glass.

The prior art has made an attempt to solve: the problem by means whichprevent the brush bristles from spreading, or by guiding means ofvarious types, but such means have not met with commercial success sincethey were unreliable, cumbersome, and expensive. My invention provides areliable, inexpensive solution to the problem through means which eventhe unskilled person may use successfully.

In the drawing accompanying this specification and forming a part ofthis application, there is shown, for purposes of illustration, variousembodiments which my invention may assume, and in this drawing:

Figure 1 is a perspective view showing a paint brush having atrough-shaped bristle section,

Figure 2 is a perspective view showing an attachment which may be usedwith a conventional type paint brush,

Figure 3 is a perspective view of a paint brush showing the attachmentin place,

Figure 4 is a broken bottom plan view of the paint brush shown in Figure3, illustrating means for securing the attachment to a brush, and

Figure 5 is a fragmentary sectional view of a window dividing strip,illustrating a use of my invention.

Referring to Figure 1 of the drawing, the paint brush therein disclosedcomprises the customary handle I!) and bristle-securing ferrule H. In aconventional type brush, the bristles extend from the ferrule, as shownin dotted lines, so that the bristles, as viewed lengthwise, provide acompob 2 site end formation that is substantially oblong. Such formationmakes it difficult to paint window sash, for example, since only a smallside portion of the composite bristle structure is used, and because ofspreading action of the bristles when painting pressure is applied, itis difficult to prevent. individual bristles from contacting the glass.

I have found that by bunching-up the bristles, particularly so as toform a groove, such as the groove l2, substantially all the bristlesmaybe used" to paint a window sash, or a dividing strip as shown inFigure 5, since the flexibility of the bristles will permit the centerof the groove formation to contact the strip, and the end bristles 13',providing a feathered formation, may be accurately controlled to preventpaint from being applied to the glass. Thus, a substantial portion ofthe transverse section of the strip may be painted in. one pass.

The brush shown. in. Figure 1v is preferably designed for professionalpainters who dailyencounter painting problems of the charactermentioned. For the average person, who paints occasionally, the purchaseof a separate brush only for the painting of window sash, for example,wouldbe prohibitive, and accordingly, my invention includes meanswhereby the conventional paint brush may be converted inexpensively andeffectively;

In Figures 2 through 4, I have shown an. at.- tachment which may be usedwith a conventional type brush. Referring to Figures 3 and 4, theconventional brush includes a handle H, the usual metal ferrule 15, andbristles extending from the ferrule in formation as shown in dottedlines in Figure 1. 1

The attachment comprises a body portion l6 adapted to be secured to arigid portion of the brush, as for example, to the ferrule I5, by anysuitable means which provide quick and easy attachment and detachment.As an example of suitable attaching means, I have shown arms I'l-l'l andIll-l8 extending from opposite sides of the body portion It, the arms I!having apertures IQ for receiving the finger portions of the arms H3.The attachment is preferably made of a suitable bendable, form-retainingmaterial, such as a light auge sheet metal, so that the arms lll1 andiii-48 may be wrapped around the ferrule l5, and the finger portions ofthe arms I8|8 threaded through respective apertures I8 and bent over, asshown in Figure 4, in the manner of a pipe strap.

Extending from the body portion I6 is a troughshaped portion 20,comprising sides 2!, 22 disposed at an angle to each other, and defininga space therebetween which increases from the free end of the portion toits connection with the body I 6.

As seen in Figures 3 and 4, the trough-shaped portion 20 partiallyembraces the bristles of the brush, and bunches these bristles toprovide the groove formation. It will be appreciated that the shape ofthe groove may be changed by sliding the body one way or the other alongthe ferrule l5, the connecting arms l1-i1 and l8-I8 yieldingsufficiently to permit a user to make an adjustment. A notch 23 may beformed at the intersection of the sides 2|, 22 to assist in thepositionment of the bristles and to facilitate flexing of the bristles.

It will be appreciated that the shape of the trough-shaped portion 20may be varied from the exact shape shown on the drawings. Further, insome instances, the body portion l6 may be dispensed with and thetrough-shaped portion may be otherwise connected to the brush, such asby integral formation with the ferrule 15.

The attachment may be made as a metal stamping, and may be formed toprovide the trough-shaped portion 20, or the stamping may be unformed,with score lines or ordinary markings indicating the line of bend.

From the foregoing, it wil be apparent to those skilled in the art thatI have accomplished at least the principal object of my invention, andit also will be apparent to those skilled in the art that theembodiments herein described may be variously changed and modified,without departing from the spirit of the invention, and that theinvention is capable of uses and has advantages not herein specificallydescribed, hence it will be appreciated that the herein disclosedembodiment is illustrative only, and that my invention is not limitedthereto.

I claim:

1. An attachment for a conventional paint brush comprising a body formedfrom sheet material and having oppositely extending arms adapted to bewraped around a rigid portion of a paint brush, one of said arms havinga slot and the other having a tongue fitting said slot and bendableafter disposition through said slot to hold said body in assembledposition on said paint brush, said body also having a generallytriangular portion formed with laterally extending sides defining atrough-shaped portion which narrows in a direction toward its free end,said trough-shaped portion being adapted to fit lengthwise over thebristles of the brush with the narow part of the trough adjacent to theend of the bristles, said arms holding said troughshaped portion inposition on the brush to press against the paint brush bristles andreshape them to grooved formation as viewed in transverse section.

2. An attachment for a conventional paint brush comprising a body havinga generally triangular back portion formed with laterally extendingsides defining a trough which narrows in a direction toward a free end,and said body including means for securing it to the handle portion ofsaid brush, said body being of relatively rigid material and in securedposition on said brush receiving the brush bristles within its troughwith the narrow end of the trough adjacent to the free ends of thebristles, and said body reshaping the bristles in conformance with theoutline of said trough so that the bristles are in grooved formationwhen viewed in transverse section.

ROBERT W. PERKINS.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 271,813 Dischinger Feb. 6, 1883 517,868 Krichbaum Apr. 10,1894 657,011 Schilz Aug. 28, 1900 960,362 Maendler June 7, 19101,319,493 Severance Oct. 21, 1919 1,645,976 Thompson Oct. 18, 19271,689,855 Breitenback Oct. 30, 1928 1,915,893 Kinpoitner June 27, 19332,136,595 Rogers Nov. 15, 1938 2,159,432 Enns May 23, 1939 2,230,126Westervelt Jan. 28, 1941 2,467,570 Ward Apr. 19, 1949 2,558,191Nightingale June 26, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 297,269Great Britain Sept. 20, 1928 870,551 France Dec. 12, 1941

